Education

Mayo Clinic is a unique environment for Ph.D., M.D./Ph.D. and postdoctoral training. Students and research fellows who come to Mayo Clinic are interested intrinsically in the medical applications of science. The role of the Department of Immunology is to provide strong basic science support as a foundation for the clinical and translational research activities seeking to improve patient outcomes. The faculty members run independent research programs.

Our programs focus on the discovery of mechanisms regulating inflammation and immunity as well as the application of these principles to understanding, preventing and treating disease. The interests of our students and postdocs in the clinical applications of immunology fuel many bench-to-bedside and bedside-to-bench partnerships, strengthening the role of basic science in the development of new solutions to prevent and treat disease.

Immunology track of Ph.D. training through Mayo Graduate School

All Ph.D. training is administered by Mayo Graduate School. The immunology training faculty members are particularly driven to teach students how to ask questions, find answers and communicate ideas. The department, as a whole, is extremely dedicated to nurturing student creativity and takes a team approach to training, giving each student access to whatever expertise will help take his or her research to the next level. All Ph.D. students are financially supported for the duration of their enrollment. Mayo Graduate School partners with a National Institutes of Health-sponsored training grant (T32) to support this nationally recognized education program.

Immunology Ph.D. Graduates 1986-2010 — Mayo Graduate School

Clinical Lab Director - 1

Scientist, Medical/Non Academic - 1

Not in Science/Medicine - 2

Intellectual Property - 3

Practicing Medicine - 5

Senior Research Associates - 6

Private Sector Scientists - 7

Academic Appointment - 27

Still in Postgraduate Training - 29

Postdoctoral training

Research fellows come from all over the world, often driven to extend their scientific training toward clinical application. Postdoctoral training is managed primarily by individual faculty members. These investigators support a collegial and collaborative approach to research that emphasizes discovery of mechanisms regulating inflammation and immunity as well as the application of these principles to understanding, preventing and treating disease. Research fellows at Mayo Clinic are eligible to compete for a number of internal and external funding opportunities administered by Mayo Clinic-sponsored programs.

The laboratories of approximately 30 faculty members serve as focal points for the training of graduate students seeking Ph.D. and M.D./Ph.D. degrees through Mayo Graduate School. As the field of immunology transects many areas of the biomedical sciences, our students may be pursuing degrees through tracks other than immunology. Graduates of this highly successful program remain engaged in science — pursuing careers in academia, industry and elsewhere.

Summer (SURF)

Faculty members in the Department of Immunology participate in the Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) program sponsored by Mayo Graduate School. Department representatives help recruit outstanding college undergraduates to experience our enthusiasm for research during early stages of their careers. Faculty as well as fellows and current graduate students meet regularly with the SURF students and guide them in their research projects. Their experience culminates with a gathering of the entire program for formal poster presentations by the students and a departmental research symposium where students give formal talks. As one former SURF student says, "I learned more this summer than in a whole semester course in immunology at school."

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